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ZHLT
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ZHLT (Zoners Half-Life Tools) is a collection of compiler-compiler tools for Half-Life and games or mods running on the GoldSrc graphics engine. The suite is based on the "q" tools, which came with the original GoldSrc software development kit They are the de-facto standard in HL1 engine mapping, and have probably been used for 85%+ of all maps released for HL1, Counter-Strike, TFC, and so forth. On any mapping forum, beginners are immediately advised to forget the default tools and get ZHLT. They are a "household name" among half-life mappers. ZHLT takes a raw .MAP file, made in level editor such as the Valve Hammer Editor or QuArK, and processes the information into a playable .BSP file. Some of the notable features of the tools include * Null texture (similar to no draw) * Colored shadows (stained glass window effects, etc) * Opaque brushes * Increased Texture memory usage * Planes optimisations In a VERC collective forum thread, Valve developers actually didn't believe that the null texture had been implemented at first since they were unable to implement a no draw texture themselves! The tools had originally intended to be usable on x86 Windows platforms, but with the release of ZHLT 3.4, the tools also support x64 Windows. Each release the SDK is upgraded so that people can compile, or modify the tools, for use on Unix-based systems. To conclude the ZHLT tools are the shining example (and one of the first) of modders adopting an open source philosophy with respect to rewriting development tools, and creating a product of considerably higher quality than the original game company. 
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